Best Not To Get Your Hopes Up
by thebookwasbetter394
Summary: Clarity Jones is tasked with the responsibility of fixing the effects of The Snap by going back in time 24 hours before it happens and trying again each time they fail. Trouble is, they fail a lot, leaving her to go back and start over as the only person who knows the events about to unfold. Maybe this time will be different, but best not to get your hopes up.
1. Chapter 1

Hey guys, so I know, I am a terrible author, I have been M.I.A for what, a year now? Yikes. Anyway, I felt spontaneously inspired at midnight last night so I decided to up and write this. Again, I wrote this in one go at midnight, so I can't promise the quality of it, but I decided to post it anyway. I have been sitting on this premise for a while now, and am really excited to start delving into it. I hope you guys enjoy reading it as much as I do writing it. :)

Alright well, without further a dew, here it is my lovelies.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Marvel character's just my OCs.

Clarity blinked slowly as she felt herself come back. She took deep breaths and relished the feeling of clear air filling her lungs. This was the only good part about the trip back – being able to breath without worrying about what, or rather who, you're breathing in.

As she let herself settle and felt the feeling coming back to her limbs, she glanced around and focused on her surroundings, even though it made no difference. They're always the same. Every time she comes back. She's always in AP Biology with Mr. Fitz at 11:32 am, 24 hours before the whole world goes to shit.

And so, like every time before, she looked around her to see that she was surrounded by classmates all blissfully ignorant of what had just taken place. Or rather, what _will_ take place. In 24 hours. Unless Clarity stops it, which she never does and honestly doesn't have much hope she'll figure out how to this time around. She'd done it enough to understand that though hope was powerful, it was also dangerous, and could ruin a person. She'd given up hoping long ago, and now she was just doing. She was just running through an ever shortening list of things to do that might work, but probably not. Best to not get your hopes up.

But just because she didn't let herself hope didn't mean she didn't feel anything. She tried not to, and she wished that she didn't - all of this would be so much easier if she just didn't feel anything - but sadly, the universe hated her, so she always felt. Always felt everything, all at once, especially on the trip back. Felt the weight of what had occurred just seconds before, and many times previous, settle on her like a boulder, smothering her so she couldn't breath, much less call for help. So Clarity allowed herself one break – one brief moment of time where she could just stop and stay still for a moment. She leaned back in her uncomfortable standard school chair and did just that. She breathed. She counted - 1, 2, 3. Ok, enough. Back to reality. Back to the depressing reality she had become so accustomed to.

Sitting strait once more, she began to calmly gather her things up in front of her, stuffing them into her back pack. She had done this every time, and every time, without fail, Mr. Fitz would stop his lecture and look, and then so would the entire class. She was used to it by this point – expecting it really – so it did nothing to faze her.

Finally, the jittery science teacher piped up,

"M-Ms. Johnson, may I help you?" he asked.

Clarity didn't respond. She finished packing her things and stood up, walking to the front of the room to where her teacher stood. She paused for a moment, looking at him with a sadness in her eyes that stretched beyond her years.

"I'm not sure anyone can" she spoke softly before promptly turning and walking out of the class.

Peter Parker loved biology, that much was sure, but Mr. Fitz had a way of teaching it that made it seem like the most boring subject on the entire planet. Even Peter had trouble staying focused. Don't get it wrong, he tried to pay attention, he really did, but each time, without fail, he would find his mind wandering and his pen scribbling.

This class, with the teacher droning on about the intricacies of mitosis, Peter was absent mindedly drawing different chemical formulas on the margin of his page. He finished sketching glucose and glanced up to see the clock turn 11:32, movement out of the corner of his eye catching his attention. He turned his head, watching Clarity Johnson slowly sit slightly straighter and blink a couple times, her pen that was usually writing down notes stopping.

Peter didn't know her very well. She was just the girl that he used to be best friends with in elementary, but had found a different group in middle school and drifted apart. Namingly the popular group. Because of that, they didn't really talk anymore except for a 'hey' in the hallways. She wasn't mean or anything, in fact, she had never been anything but perfectly nice to him, but she was untouchable in her social status compared to his. He had a feeling the only reason she still even acknowledged him in passing was because she felt bad. But whatever, the past was in the past. He was over it.

He watched as she breathed in deeply through her mouth, still blinking every couple seconds. A darker look fell across her face like a shadow. She looked different – older. Not the same happy and innocent teenager that he usually saw laughing from a distance. Her eyes were darker and held behind them a pain and emptiness he hadn't seen before. She even slouched a little bit more, as if a sudden weight had been thrust upon her shoulders. He frowned as she leaned back and closed her eyes, pursing her mouth as if stealing herself to do something. He was about to ask her if she was ok when she suddenly sat up and started gathering up her things from her desk and shoving them in her bag. A silence fell across the room as the noise from her actions drew attention. Even Mr. Fitz stopped and looked confused.

"M-Mrs. Johnson, may I help you?" he stuttered.

It seemed as if she didn't hear him, merely continuing to clear her desk, after which she stood up and walked to the front of the room. Only when she was there and facing their science teacher did she stop. From behind, and relatively near the back of the class, Peter didn't see what her expression was or what she said next, but based off of their teacher's reaction and his spidey senses suddenly making his hair stand on end after she left the room, it couldn't have been good.

Everyone was shocked for a couple seconds, seemingly not sure what to do. Mr. Fitz was the first to take action.

"I, uh, well that-uh.." he tried, fumbling for words.

Peter suddenly felt a rush of determination and, in one fluid movement, swept from his desk and out the door after the girl he had once considered his closest friend.

Clarity walked stiffly towards the school's double doors that would lead outside. In her head she was going over the list of things she had to do, making small steps so it was easier to complete. She would think of them as a to-do list and give herself orders. Orders like _get to those doors. Open them. Go outside. Walk to the sanctum._ It made it simpler, and her brain needed simpler right now. The first hour or two after the trip back was always the worst, When she was still trying to forget the horrors she had just relived for the umpteenth time. She continued to try to push the images of it out of her mind as she leaned into the doors, pushing them open. Just then, right on time, as always, she heard a voice call out.

She continued on, walking outside and starting down the steps towards the front gate. The voice called to her again and she heard the doors open behind her, footsteps scrambling down the steps after her. Hearing his voice and then turning and seeing his face always broke a part of her, no matter how many times she did it, so she tried postpone it as long as she could. Alas, he caught up and forced her to face the facts.

A hand gently but firmly gripped her upper arm, stopping her in her tracks.

"Clarity," he said for the third time, panting a little from running to catch up to her. She waited a moment, closing her eyes and stealing herself to turn and face him. When she finally did, she realized that it was no use. As soon as she saw those kind brown eyes and worried expression, she felt her heart break even more, something she thought not possible.

Clarity forced a smile on her face, though she suspected by the look on his that it wasn't very convincing.

"It's Claire, Pete, you know that," she tried to sound casual, but heard the sad tone herself. She turned around again, gently freeing herself from his grip and continuing toward the gate, opening it and stepping threw. She felt him hesitate a moment, then follow her, closing it behind him. She immediately turned right, continuing to walk. He quickly caught up to her, keeping pace by her side.

"Uh, right, sorry. Claire," he stuttered, playing with his hands and blushing slightly. She smiled and shook her head fondly.

"You're going to ask me what's wrong," she said for him. "Do you want the short or the long version? Well, you're going to get the long one pretty soon, so why don't we just keep it short but sweet hm?"

Peter was looking at her now, watching her facial expression intently. She glanced at him, but refused to make eye contact when she said the next part.

"In 24 hours, half the universe is going to be snapped out of existence, present company included. I came back to try to stop it, but I'm going to need help, so if you could call Tony and tell him we're coming to the compound in 10 that would be great."


	2. Chapter 2

Wow I am posting a second chapter in less than forever this is groundbreaking revolutionary happenings right here. I was feeling very inspired tonight, so here it is, another addition to this story! Hope you enjoy and feel free to include constructive criticism to help me get better. Thank you and enjoy lovelies :)

Disclaimer: I do not unfortunately own any marvel characters, just my OCs.

Clarity didn't miss a beat, continuing on and turning left to cross an intersection without any hesitation. Peter, on the other hand, was a different story. He blanked, both for words and for the momentary ability to walk. He stood still for a few seconds, watching her walk ahead as his brain tried to process what she had just said. 24 hours. Half the universe. Here to stop it. Call Tony. Call. Tony.

Finally, his brain seemed to break free from the trance it was in, and he hurried to catch her before the light turned green.

"Wait! Wait – slow down, I-I don't quite understand" he burst as he scrambled to her side.

"What's there to not understand? In 24 hours, you will have ceased to exist, and I am going to be pulled back here to do it all over again unless I figure out _the_ event. The _one_ thing that lets us finally win, and I can finally stop listening to Mr. Fitz talk about mitosis," she gave a half hearted laugh. Without so much as a glance his way, she turned right again, hugging the buildings to her right side.

Peter's mind was reeling. This was not what he had expected to hear when he followed her out of Biology. Not in the slightest. He fumbled for words to express his confusion and disbelief, but she spoke before he could.

"Look, just to establish a few things first, I know this is probably pretty big news for you, but we really don't have time for you to be off in la la land trying to sort out the meaning of existence. I need Spiderman at the top of his game to help us fight Thanos or we're screwed, okay?" She turned to look at him, just briefly, before looking forward again. However, this time, when Peter stopped, she stopped as well, turning to face him. His mouth was open and moving but no sound escaped it until he finally got out an "I uh don't know what you mean…". Clarity rolled her eyes.

"Yes, 'Spiderman'. Wow, I said it," sarcasm dripped from her voice. "I know you're Spiderman Pete. Mostly because I come from a future where you told me, but also because you're really bad at keeping secrets. I'm surprised the entire school hasn't guessed it yet," she remarked, turning and continuing on once more. Peter was silent and lagged for a brief moment, this time when he started walking again, he didn't rush to catch up to Clarity, but rather stayed a few steps behind her in order to process the new information.

After just a few more blocks, Clarity suddenly stopped again, turning to face a set of large double doors with elaborate designs on them. A sign near them read "177A Bleecker Street". She only hesitated for a moment before taking a breath and, without knocking, opened them.

Clarity heard Peter squeak in protest as she entered the building, saying something about how you can't just walk into people's homes like that. She ignored him, having already heard this speech several times.

"Hello?" she called out into the empty foyer, stopping near the center. There was a few moments of silence before someone appeared. More like two someones. Advancing from either side of them were Doctor Strange and Wong. Both men had their hands up, glowing golden circles activated on each. Peter immediately stepped in front of Clarity, putting a hand out to stop her, his hero-instincts kicking in, she assumed.

"Ah, there you are, took you long enough. You realize we're kind of on a clock here," she snipped, glancing down at her phone she pulled from her bag. Unfortunately, the day that she was always pulled back to was one where she had decided to wear a skirt instead of her usual jeans. This particular maroon skirt didn't have pockets, so she had to retrieve her phone from her bag every time she wanted the time. It was a hassle.

"Who are you and how did you get in here?" Strange asked, ignoring her remark.

"The door. It was unlocked," she answered dismissively, hiding a smile as Strange shot Wong a dirty look. "Look, my name is Claire, this is Peter and we need your help. Basically, half the universe is going to be wiped from existence if you don't help, and I will explain it more later, but right now, I need you to help me round everyone up."

Everyone was silent. The two teens (Claire had now moved to stand beside Peter, her hand on his arm as reassurance that she knew what she was doing) facing off against two skeptical wizards. Finally, Wong piped up.

"How can we trust you?"

"There isn't time to go through this right now, you just need to trust me that you can trust me so please help me," she hurried, glancing again at her phone. 12:01.

Strange and Wong exchanged a glance. Clarity sighed.

"Wizard's honor," she said, and though it was cheesy, it had worked a couple times before. Moving her arms up and pulling them apart quickly, two sparkling golden circles appearing on either forearm that looked exactly like the ones decorating the older men's arms. Strange raised an eyebrow. Wong put his arms down. Peter gawked and took a small step back. She had to admit it hurt every time he did that. She tried to look past it, focusing instead on the wizards in front of them.

Putting her arms down, the circles fizzled out. She looked straight at Strange, maintaining eye contact, "you can trust me. I am just trying to save everyone, but I can't do that without you helping me get them all together. Once that is done, I will explain everything."

Strange still seemed doubtful, but put his arms down. Clarity sighed, finally breaking eye contact with him. She glanced towards Peter who was still staring at her with his mouth wide.

"Aw c'mon Pete, aint you ever seen magic?" she teased, rubbing her thumb against her fingers, golden sparks dancing off of them. She laughed at his wondered expression. She felt a spark of surprise at herself. She hadn't genuinely laughed since…since…well she couldn't remember when. It felt nice.

Clarity turned back to Strange, finding him exchanging another glance with Wong.

"Alright, fine. We will help you. Now who exactly is 'them'?"


	3. Chapter 3

Hey guys, yay, chapter 3! Can I just say that I really suck at not dropping off the face of the earth for a good few months before finally resurfacing and showing up with new content I frantically wrote in a burst of motivation at 12 in the morning. I should really get that sorted out. Anyway, here is a new chapter to this fic that I hope you all are enjoying so far. I think that in the next chapters I am going to try to up the word count, so just be aware of that for the future.

As always, your feedback literally gives me the reason and motivation to write at all, so it is infinitely appreciated if you could respond to this, letting me know what you thought, or even just that you read it! I appreciate and love you all so much, and I hope you enjoy this new chapter!

Relatively quickly, Clarity had dealt out the tasks that needed to get done by each of them to ensure that everyone made it here: Strange needed to get to Scotland and track down team Cap; Wong was tasked with handling team Space; and Peter had the slightly less magical job of calling Tony Stark and telling him they were crashing his place in 10. Clarity would have liked for them to meet in Wakanda - what was probably the most secure location on earth at that point - but she had learned from previous attempts that King T'Challa and his people weren't so eager to allow a group of strangers into their uber-secret-kingdom unless they knew what was going on first.

Which left Clarity with that job – contacting the King himself.

After hashing that out with everyone, they split off to their separate tasks, though a little hesitantly – the wizards clearly still skeptical of the reliability of a 16-year-old girl, and Peter still shocked at Clarity's abilities. Nonetheless, they got on it.

Clarity watched as Wong and Strange used their sling rings to magic themselves to their separate locations as she heard Peter trying to convince Happy that the call he was making was important – _no_ he wasn't calling about another churro lady – _yes_ Mr. Stark would want to hear it – in the background. She found herself smiling slightly as she listened to his exasperated voice plead with the disgruntled head of security.

Shaking her head, she turned to fish her phone out of her bag once more, letting the luggage slip off her shoulder and onto the floor once she had what she needed. Flashing the screen on, she made her way to a corner of the room, hands tracing the walls and opening a secret compartment with the familiarity of someone who had done this before. 3:49. Good. There was still time. They were actually a little ahead of schedule compared to some of the other tries, which meant more time to argue over what to do this time around, only to come to another dead-end conclusion that would wind up with Thanos winning – _again_ – half of the universe turning to dust – _again_ – and Clarity being dragged back to start over – _again_.

Shrugging off those depressing thoughts, she focused her attention on what was at hand, or rather, _in_ her hand right now. Walking away from the compartment where she had just retrieved the sling ring in her palm, she heading back over to her fellow teen, throwing her phone onto an old looking table with an expensive looking artifact on it. She was going to have to trust her inner clock for now.

By this point, Peter had gotten through to Tony and was rambling away in his effort to get the older man to agree to a massive super-hero-style reunion at the compound in 10 minutes.

"'What is this for'? Well, you see, actually, I am not like _100_ % sure – yeah I know it's not the best idea to just go with whatever someone says without being 100% sure – well I _do_ know her – elementary, but— Mr. Stark _I_ trust her, and she says that this is really serious – yeah serious, like world-ending serious I don't know-" Peter had his back turned to her as he argued with his mentor, making exasperated hand motions every so often.

Clarity found herself staring at the back of his head, smiling softly at how normal it seemed. Even though, yeah, they were discussing the world-ending phenomenon about to take place, but the way they bantered back and forth made her appreciate this time all the more. Especially considering how she knew the older man would take Peter's dusting after The Snap. Like how he had the first time, when the loop wasn't in place. When half the universe was snapped into non-existence, and had stayed that way. For _eight months_.

Eight months of trying to pick up the broken pieces left behind by the decimation, and eight months of falling apart despite their best efforts. Those eight months had taught Claire that even the most callous-seeming people have a breaking point - have a heart. And Tony's heart was Peter, even if neither of them realized it right now. Losing his surrogate son had destroyed the man, it had destroyed all of them – it was impossible not to love the dork – and Clarity had been witness to it up close. It was one of the reasons she had agreed to being stuck in the time loop, and one of the reasons that kept her going through each reboot; she was not going to let Peter and the other people dusted cease to exist even if it killed her, both for them and those they left behind.

With that memory and her subsequent surge in motivation, Clarity slipped on the sling ring, twisting it slightly so that it fit snuggly on her fingers. Turning around in a circle for a moment, she finally paused facing a section of the room that had a relatively clear space. Throwing both hands up, she positioned them, readying to open a portal.

Glancing at Peter, she found him still on the phone. "Pete, you want me to send you to the compound early, or you up for seeing some genuine royalty?" At his name, Peter glanced towards her, his eyes catching on her outstretched hands and a look of barely-suppressed excitement washing over his face.

"Oh my god, Mr. Stark, I have to go – she's about to open a flipping _magic portal_ , this is not something I am going to miss being a part of – yeah _magic_ , it's awesome and – _hey_ , I'm not lying I swear! _Magic_!" At an annoyed but amused look from Clarity, Peter quickly rushed to end the conversation.

"Ok, Ok, I have to go – yeah in ten – _oh this is about to be the best day of my life_ -" Peter clicked off his phone and scrambled over to stand beside Clarity. He was practically vibrating with excitement despite his best efforts to seem professional. Any earlier apprehension about her reveal of abilities and awkwardness about talking to her for the first time in what he thought was years was gone, replaced by pure giddiness at the chance to walk through a _magic portal. Clarity_ chuckled, she always did, no matter how many times she lived the same thing over again. He was like a puppy.

"Alright, what'll it be? Stark or Wakanda?" She smiled up at him playfully. He returned the look, all giddiness. "I mean, I've never actually _been_ to Africa, so…"

As soon as both teenagers had stepped through the portal and into Shuri's workshop in Wakanda, the golden sparks fizzling out behind them, they were dodging a blast of blue light, Peter's spider sense causing him to shove them both to the ground before they were hit.

"Woah, Shuri! Hold fire! Hold fire!" Clarity yelped, her hands quick to form a large golden protective shield in front of them as the attack continued to rain down. At the mention of her name, the young girl ceased her fire. Cautiously, and with a nervous Peter practically hugging her side to push her out of the way if he sensed danger again, Clarity rose to her feet, letting the circle fizzle away.

"Who are you?" the Wakandan Princess questioned, her hands still raised with the two panther shaped gauntlets pointed at them "And how do you know my name? And, while we're asking, how did you get in here?" Shuri stalked closer to them, her expression wary and untrusting as she sized up the two teenagers in front of her.

"We need you and your brothers' help with something. Something you both are definitely going to want to be a part of," Clarity reasoned, her palm slightly extended towards the girl in an attempt to placate her.

"We'll be the judge of that," came another voice, accompanied by an almost soundless thump behind them that was no doubt the King himself in his famous Black Panther costume, come to see why his sister was firing shots. Peter whirled around at this new guest, but Clarity had expected it, and merely turned so that she could look at them both at the same time, folding her arms across her chest in a causal stance.

"Great, we're all here. Ok, so, we really need you both to come with us to help stop a world ending catastrophe happening in less than 24 hours." Claire's explanation was met with silence. After a moment, Shuri broke it by laughing half-heartedly, a little dumb-struck by the straight-forward confession. Her brother, though, was the first to speak, "Why should we believe you?"

"Well, you really shouldn't, considering we don't even know each other. But I'm telling the truth, and that's really all I can offer at this point," She laid it out flat for them both, being honest because they _really_ did not have time to explain everything right now only to have to re-explain it all in a couple minutes.

The two royals regarding her for a second more before T'Challa's nanotech suit retracted into his teeth shaped necklace, and he responded.

"You work with Stark, don't you." He eyed Clarity. A tilt of her head was her only response to what he said. "You have his bluntness. I will come with you, but I warn you now, you have one chance."

Clarity laughed despite herself.

"You can stay if you want, Shuri, but I must find out what Stark wants," T'Challa moved to stand beside the teenagers, giving Clarity a short nod.

"And let you save the world by yourself? I will not let you have all the fun, brother." The Princess moved to stand on the other side of them, following her brother's decision with confidence.

"Cool cool. Ok, two down. Let's see how the others are doing," with that, Clarity raised her hands, summoning another portal, to which they all stepped through.

It seemed the others had succeeded as well, although the circumstances with which Wong had gotten the Guardians there seemed sketchy at best, if Quill's ramblings about being kidnapped were anything to go by. Nonetheless, within 5 minutes of Clarity's group's arrival, the rest of the team was assembled in the largest conference room at the compound, with an uncomfortable looking Tony Stark standing towards the back. She could imagine why. Not only had he just been ambushed by a surprise meeting of 15+ superheroes, but although Tony had managed to avoid him for the time being, the tension between him and Steve was felt by everyone. The latter man was positioned beside Black Widow and The Falcon near the front opposite corner. Clarity rolled her eyes. Right now the old arguments of Siberia, no matter how awful Clarity knew it had gotten (going off what Tony had confessed to her over those eight months), was petty at best compared to what they had coming.

Crossing to the front of the room, she stopped to survey the large crowd of superheroes. To her left, and at the front of the room, the Guardians were gathered in a lose group, attempting making it seem as though they were comfortable in the situation, but she could tell by the stiffness of their movements that they were nervous and staying close together for comfort. Slightly to their right, Thor and Bruce stood side by side. Clarity was glad they hadn't brought Loki with them this time. _That_ had been a challenging reboot, and it was already hard enough trying to work with the unresolved tension between Tony and Steve.

Speaking of which, Tony was leaning against the wall behind them, his arms crossed and sunglasses covering his eyes. Peter stood beside the older man, not quite touching him, but Clarity could tell his presence was a comforting one to the billionaire. The boy in question was practically bubbling with the excitement of it all - being in a room with all the top players in the world, scratch that, the galaxy. It was exactly how she had felt the first loop around, the first time she had gathered all these people together. By now, though, it felt like nothing more than speaking to a roomful of friends and family. She had grown to know each and everyone of these people, spending at least a reboot with each group (back when she was trying to find the one event through being at all of them), not to mention the first three times around, before the loop. She had spent months bonding with those left after the snap, finding comfort and family in each other.

To Peter's right stood Wong and Strange, both men looking as skeptical as they did when she had first met them. Beside them, King T'Challa and his sister, standing with a poise that screamed authority. To their right, Wanda and Vision stood so close together it seemed as though they were connected. Wanda had her arms hugging herself as Vision's hand rested on her bicep, a comforting presence for the Witch, who felt unease at being back at the compound for the first time since fighting with the rest of the Avengers. In front of them, standing in a tight group, Team Cap, or what was really left. Sam and Natasha stood on either side of Steve, both of them with their arms crossed while the captain's were merely hanging by his side. Every single face in the room was looking around (or at their feet, in Wanda's case) taking in the other heroes, all of them eager to hear why they had been summoned here by literal wizards. Clarity was now happy to supply that.

Taking a quick glance at the clock on the wall (4:02), she began her spiel. "Alright, cutting right to the chase," she began, clapping her hands to draw the attention of the room. All eyes fell upon her, some surprised to see a teenager leading the conversation. "Most of you know that the world is about to end in about 23 hours, well, end for half of us." She corrected herself. The faces around the room changed, some eyes widening in shock while others narrowed skeptically. Evidently they had not.

"Ok, anyone ever heard of a dude named Thanos? Big purple grape who _really_ likes his rock collection?" She saw Gamora visibly stiffen and raise her head, staring intently at Clarity.

"Likes to destroy half of populations in his spare time?" She offered grimly, all heads turning to her. Clarity gave a tight-lipped smile, "that's the one."

She turned back to face the entirety of the group, "this giant raisin of a guy has been searching for and trying collecting all of the six infinity stones so he can snap his fingers and wish away half of all living life in the universe. I come from a future where he succeeded. I was sent back to make sure he doesn't again, no matter how many tries it takes." Her gaze fell towards her feet with the last part, feeling the weight of the words on her shoulders. No matter how many tries. _What ever it takes_.

Looking up again and hiding her expression behind a forced smile, she gave her last piece of the speech "so anyway, right now we need to brainstorm another idea that we haven't already tried that just maybe will work this time around. I gathered all the best and brightest for that, so…cheers?" With that, she pushed herself to sit on the table positioned right behind her, slouching forwards slightly and giving the room an expectant look.

There was a long silence before anybody spoke. The first to do so was Bruce, looking timid but determined as all eyes flew to him.

"You're telling us you're from the future?" Clarity nodded. "I don't understand, how is that possible? How did you _time travel_?"

"Well with that stone right there actually Dr. Banner," she explained, motioning to Dr. Strange and the golden pendant hanging around his neck. Everybody turned, while Strange reached out to touch it protectively, turning a confused expression to the teenager before realization seemed to dawn on him.

"You're in a time loop," he rationed, "set to bring you back whenever we fail to stop him."

"Ding-ding-ding."

"So if you're brought back to try again each time we fail, and you've obviously done this before, what number are we on?" This time the question came from Steve, his face set in a grim line, already expecting a depressing response.

All eyes once again fell on Clarity. The girl maintained eye contact with Steve as a sorrowful look fell across them. She clenched her jaw, gathering the energy she needed to face the responses after this reveal.

"Sixteen"


End file.
